Lifestyle

This Is Your Office in the Year 2020

This is Your Office in 2020

1. Most display screens are super-thin OLEDs.

LCD monitors will not yet have gone the way of the dinosaur in your 2020 office (Interns will likely still work on them). But PopSci predicts that paper-thin OLED screens, printable onto surfaces like windows, walls and mirrors, will dominate your environment, turning every surface into a potential monitor. Printable OLEDs have the capacity to radically change your workspace, and they may even be used to light your office in the near future.

2. The keyboard and mouse aren't dead yet.

Your computer monitor may be transformed into a super-thin panel, but futurists say the keyboard-and-mouse model will not be in its grave by 2020. The way we directly interact with our computers will stay basically the same, with some upgrades. Expect smooth, touch-sensitive aluminum keyboards or a tablet-like touchscreen with a fully customizable keyboard layout and pinch-and-zoom capabilities.

3. You see everything through smart glasses.

What our workspaces look like doesn't always match up, and is perhaps less important than how we view them. If current trends continue, stylized and simplified smart glass will be popular by 2020, and you’ll see everything through an extra lens that can augment each aspect of your life -- work definitely included. Wearing smart glasses, you’ll get an instant reminder every time you have an email, message or news alert.

There are more applications for a smartglass-enabled workplace than we can list here, and surely more than we can even imagine while living in the primitive year of 2013. But imagine a future where a virtual HUD means you can take work with you seamlessly, without the aid of a clunky peripheral smartphone. Check emails and dictate work on-the-go, at lunch and on the commute to and from work.

4. The office of 2020 can be (and is) anywhere.

Workers in the 2013 information economy (except some Yahoo employees) already know they can contribute from almost anywhere: their bedrooms, a temporary office space, a local coffeehouse, the bathroom, whatever. Our phones make it possible to keep in touch with our workplaces anywhere, any time. It might sound a little strange -- after all, if you're always connected to work, how can you tell when you're not working? -- but a study by Regus found that flexibility often leads to productivity.

5. More telecommuting means emptier offices.

If you work out of your 2020 office on a regular basis, you might be in the minority. Digital meetings will prevail, with co-workers beamed into a conference from around the globe. Don’t expect holographic representations of your colleagues like in the Jedi Council, but reality won’t be far off.

We wouldn’t expect the traditional office model to break down entirely, but as more people opt to work remotely, offices could become sparser by 2020. Your employer may choose to do away with a corporate headquarters, as some companies in India already have. Don’t worry, though, because fewer people in the office means more space and flexibility. Think something like the Slugline offices from House of Cards.

6. Your workspace is reactive.

Some have predicted changes to your office that sound straight out of sci-fi. Imagine a chair that can sense your mood and maintain an optimal working environment -- keeping temperature, humidity, lighting and other factors at the right level for you to work efficiently. Likewise, a sensor might detect stress in your posture and shoot a message to your boss asking for a lighter load.

7. You need smarter calendars.

In a word, expect your entire office to get smarter. If you’re working from home, you’ll need to enforce a schedule to meet deadlines and stay accountable. That means calendar apps to break up and analyze your workday, and maximize your efficiency. Your schedule will be nuts; you’ll be more connected with your office, even when you’re on vacation. So you’ll need to keep everything straight. Expect to consult your calendar constantly, for almost every decision you make in a work day. Or, rather, expect your calendar to consult you.

In the distant year 2020, you'll speed to work in your flying car and a robot maid named Rosie will do all your work for you.

Not so fast — this isn't The Jetsons. But today's connected world would seem like science fiction to the typical person living just a few decades ago. So what advances will we make by the start of the next decade? Surely there will be changes to your daily routine as technology moves forward. What will your computer look like? Will everyone in the office receive a jetpack as a signing bonus?

You won't find jetpacks in the gallery above, unfortunately. But you should familiarize yourself with your 2020 office, because you'll be spending a lot of time there. In fact, a recent poll found that 42% of executives expect employees to work more hours over the next decade, and only 9% expect them to work less.

During that time you'll likely see your office empty out as more co-workers opt to telecommute from home. Or maybe you'll prefer to work at home yourself. Either way, your surroundings will change. To learn more about your workspace in 2020, check out the gallery above.

What would you like to see in your future office? Let us know in the comments.

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is a leading source for news, information and resources for the Connected Generation. Mashable reports on the importance of digital innovation and how it empowers and inspires people around the world. Mashable's record 42 million unique visitors worldwide and 21 million social media followers are one of the most influential and engaged online communities. Founded in 2005, Mashable is headquartered in New York City with an office in San Francisco.